America was armed for the rigors of a new century, but the country was not ready for war.
America remained neutral before joining the Allied cause in April 1917.
The American military was slowly coming of age in the 20thCentury.
The American Expeditionary Force suffered more than 320,000 casualties including 53,402 killed in action and 204,000 wounded.
America paid a stiff price to become a global superpower.
The reality is that some of us needed a bit of training.
Uncle Sam had quite a handful of handgun waiting for them: the semi-automatic .45 caliber M1911.
The M1911 was provided to as many American soldiers, sailors and Marines as the U.S. military could provide.
When America joined the war in April 1917, there were only about 75,000 M1911 pistols available.
U.S. Army doctrine called for systematic instruction in the nomenclature and mechanism of the pistol.
Once in France, many Doughboys needed additional instruction at combat training centers near the front.
All of these weapons combined to provide the prime striking power of AEF infantry small arms.
Apparently, some Doughboys believed their M1911 pistol to be in the same class as their battle rifle.
As great as it was, the M1911 was not a machine gun or snipers rifle.
The point in 1918 was well made, and still applicable today.
Combat shooting at longer ranges is merely wasting ammunition.
I can assure you that I am not one of them.
But even they will not forsake their rifle to shoot a pistol at long range.
It was all part of the training that comes through hard-won combat experience.
The war to end all wars was over, at least for the moment.
Until the day that U.S. arms and American courage were needed to bring peace once again.
